This is the story of my life in Buffalo, N.Y. where I write and draw. I am finishing up the biography of the great American pianist Leonard Pennario, a massive project I began 11 years ago when I had the unbelievable good fortune to get to know him. I also love to sketch.
The blog on this page features my adventures in art and other things. The Music Critic blog -- click the link on the right and down a bit -- has my thoughts on music. Thank you for visiting!

Friday, January 30, 2009

Under the bright lights

Zounds! Zut alors! Yesterday I ran a picture of a boxer Joey Giambra who was not Joey Giambra. He called me up late to tell me that and told me that the boxer Joey Giambra was the father of the county executive Joel Giambra, pictured yesterday.

Ach du lieber! I have no right living in Buffalo without having my Giambras straight.

Good thing I am writing a book about Leonard Pennario, not Joey Giambra!

Subsequently, shamefacedly, I deleted the picture from yesterday's blog. Joey Giambra said, "Take it down," so that is what I did. He was laughing and everything so no one need get all upset. But still.

Since then, what the heck, I put the picture back up. Go ahead and revisit yesterday's post. There it is!

Meanwhile ... Yesterday, what a day, under the bright lights of Joey Giambra's cameras!

They sat me on this stage and I had to talk into this light. I felt like in "A Chorus Line," above(think of me as the one in purple with the big thighs) where Michael Douglas is out there in the darkness and the questions come out of the darkness and the dancers are answering. I had to talk about Leonard Pennario which for me is no problem. But it is a funny feeling, having the lights turned on you like that, and being told just to talk.

Back to my experience on stage. This was at Buffalo State College's Media center which, if you have never seen it, you should go. It is like the Pentagon. It is huge and there is equipment everywhere. They led me through all these halls into this studio and sat me in a chair alone on this soundstage and a Buff State student clipped a mic on me and got me a glass of water which, being me, I managed to knock over so they got me another one. Then Joey Giambra and his colleague Mike sat out in the darkness like Michael Douglas and Mike asked me questions.

At one point I almost cracked up. That was when I mentioned how Pennario's family was from Sicily. I saw Joey Giambra give Mike a shove and start laughing and I almost started laughing too.

At another point I started crying and I had to get a grip. That was when I was talking about how when I met Pennario, he was actually dying.

At still another point I heard Joey Giambra saying something like: "This is crazy. This should be a movie. I could see this as a movie."

I did not plan on talking about myself and my personal dealings with Leonard but they asked me questions specifically about that and I felt as if I were in a courtroom and had to tell the truth. That courtroom thing kicks in when you are sitting there with the lights shining on you.

This went on for I am guessing about an hour. At the end of it I felt kind of drained but also happy and more focused than I have felt in a long time, I have to say that. It is an interesting challenge having to sum up in one minute what makes Leonard Pennario great. Instead of holding forth for three hours.